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18 Entrepreneurs Share Their Top 20 Tips

Most of it sounds like the adults speaking on Charlie Brown: “mwa mwa-mwa mwa mwa”

But sometimes between all the mumbo-jumbo comes ear piercing wisdom. Yes — pure unfiltered advice in search of a landing pad in the brain of startup entrepreneurs.

And so my question when having an audience of rock star entrepreneurs is always this:

“If I were a 20 year old just starting my first business; and you could give me only one piece of advice or wisdom; what would it be?”

Having landed smack dab in the middle of a ton of smart, well heeled entrepreneurs at a recent live event in Scottsdale, Arizona — I asked my question.

Low and behold, 18 entrepreneurs fired off 20 bits of wickedly good advice for all of us.

Let the wisdom begin…

1.) The Power of Connections

“Network! Make connections and keep a record on each person you meet. Ask for their advice and help. Keep in touch with them along the way and build your network before you need it! Quality relationships are the keys to the kingdom.” – Clare Dreyer

2.) Focus, Focus and Focus

“Focus on ONE NICHE! And become the expert guru in that niche with your brand. Don’t get greedy! It’s the reason most quit by spreading themselves too thin.” – George Shepherd

3.) You Will Fail at Times

“Look forward to failure. This is how you learn to succeed. There is plenty of time to get it right — so go ahead and just do it — and get it wrong.” – Graham Phoenix

4.) Let Your Passion Drive You

“Find what you’re truly passionate about and go for it head on. Your passion driving you on your entrepreneurial journey. And understand there is NO Such THING AS BALANCE when you’re building your empire. There are things entrepreneurs do that others will not.” – Katerina Gasset

5.) Stop Thinking of Your Own Wallet

“Be of service; give value. Rather than thinking “how can I make a living and make money”; think ”how can I serve and truly add value to people’s lives? How can I make a difference?” This is what Oprah and Deepak Chopra say is their driving mission.” – Rena Hedeman

“Surround yourself with great mentors. They help when you reach a plateau in your business cycle and can shave years off your business development and growth through advising from their mistakes and successes.” – Thalej Vasishta

7.) Stop Thinking of Your Own Wallet Part II

“Approach your business from a place of service; how can I help my audience be more successful at what they’re doing. Before you write a blog, write a newsletter, shoot a video, present a proposal be still for a moment and ask for the knowledge of what your audience needs from you right now rather than to look for a way to “win someone over.” Come from a place of how to fill someone else’s cup rather than your own. Oh yeah and build a freaking list!” – Susan Garrett

8.) Leaders Lead Through Service to Others

“Don’t be afraid to get your hands dirty and never ignore the reality of your situation. Always be honest with yourself before you criticize others. If you can’t truthfully manage yourself — you don’t have a chance of effectively managing others.” – Jason M. Aubrey

9.) Finished Beats Perfect

“Don’t wait for everything to be perfect before you make your first step. Dive in and learn as you go!” – Chris Beatty

10.) Bend to the Market

“Learn to pivot. Resist falling in love with your initial idea so you can discover what the market actually wants and is willing to pay for – and then give it to them!” – Cherylanne Skolnicki

11.) Core Values Last — Quick Buck Artists Don’t

“Remain authentic to yourself and your values as you build your business. Stand for something — never sell out for a quick buck.” – Cherylanne Skolnicki

12.) Stop Thinking of Your Own Wallet Part III

“Help people. Help when you’re happy. Help when you’re tired, and even help without attachment to getting anything in return. Keep on helping people towards a better life, straight through to your marketing. If you do this, you’ll create a marketing approach that’s based on “help marketing,” and you’ll have a business that’s never short on customers.” – Forest Linden

13.) Today is Your Day

“I love this from Og Mandino and wish I had learned this at age 20: “I will act now. I will act now. I will act now. This is the time. This is the place. I am the person.” – Julie Samford

14.) Being an Entrepreneur is a Journey — Not a Destination

“Learn to love the journey. Enjoy the slow steady movements toward what you dream of. And take refuge in the simple comforts of loving relationships, dear friends and your creative vision. Remember to smell the flowers often, listen to the birds, befriend fear. I’ll say that one again, befriend fear because it will likely be a constant companion. Nothing wrong with that, as a teacher told me, fear means: Prepare to Grow!” – Ahava Shira

15.) Unique Positioning is Everything

“Sell what people are already buying – in your own voice.” – Barry Friedman

16.) Negative People Can Bring You Down

“Do not let the naysayers and dream stealers turn your dream into a nightmare. There are so many people that will tell you no — you can’t do this. If you are surrounded by those who do, then it is time to make new friends.” – Katerina Gasset

17.) Okay — You Can Think About Your Own Wallet Now

“Stop doing anything else until you can say you’ve mastered the ability to sell what you offer. Everything is easier when you develop the ability to find a need; fill it and then be paid well to do so.” – Ken Foody

18.) Test + Action = Success

“Take small and medium size risks consistently. Test your results and focus on what works. Taking action will make you feel alive. It’s where you personally grow.” – Justin Krane

19.) Live By: “Just Watch Me”

“Ignore everyone who says you’re crazy and it will never work. Adopt the stance, “oh yeah, just watch me.” – Debra Gould

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Comments

Thank you for sharing that wonderful article Eric. Regardless of times and the changes in the way we do business, the best training is to experience entrepreneurship and to master it. I truly look forward to reading more.

Extremely insightful. It´s great having such experienced people voice their opinions and give truly adoptable and valuable lessons – helping us on our journey towards reaching our goals.

I couldn´t agree more with the continuity of learning from new experiences and from failures – I recently emailed you about one of my failures and how much it taught me! It is all valuable knowledge for the future – its just important not to let these events get you down, but inversely act as a catalyst to fuel your ambition and desire further, using your new found knowledge! That is something which I have learnt, which these fine minds in your article has reiterated.

Great top 20 tips. Here’s something I learned. Stay focus on my own performance at this very moment -it’s the only thing I can control. I can’t control any external factors or eventual results. My achievement is in the doing.